JHA’s Director of Prison Monitoring Gwyn Troyer took part in the Summit on Reentry, Reintegration and Aging hosted by the Jane Addams Center for Social Policy and Research, which focused on solutions to the barriers faced by older returning citizens as they reenter the community. Other participants included community partners, former prisoners and family of prisoners, as well as public policy stakeholders such as the Director of the Illinois Dept. of Corrections, the Deputy Director of the IDHS Mental Health Division, and a Senior Administrator from the Illinois Dept. of Aging. Gwyn noted the need for individualized support for every returning citizen, requiring collaboration and partnership between several different groups, including state agencies and community providers. Watch video here.

Our 2017 report on Western Illinois Correctional Center is our first report to incorporate the perspectives and opinions of more than 1,000 incarcerated men who responded to our surveys - this is more than half of the population of this prison. What we found echoed what JHA has long noted in our work: there is dire need for more rehabilitative investment in our prisons, including increased mental health staffing and more program opportunities.Read the full report here.

New 2017 Prisoner Letter Data Released

JHA recently released 2017 data on the letters from prisoners received and responded to by JHA during the 2017 calendar year. During this time, JHA processed nearly twice as many letters as the prior year: 5,140 letters from 2,543 individuals who were housed in a prison or jail. Of the 2,543 people who wrote JHA in 2017, more than half, 1,866, contacted JHA for the first time. In addition, JHA received and responded to more than 579 calls and emails from people in the community. Learn more here.